Systems and methods for remote deletion of contact information

ABSTRACT

An exemplary system for providing remote deletion of contact information includes a first device associated with a first user. The first device is configured to generate and send a delete request message to a second device. In some embodiments, the delete request message includes a request to delete contact information for the first user from the second device. The second device can be configured to receive the delete request message and delete the first user&#39;s contact information. A method for providing remote deletion of contact information includes a delete request message being generated at a first device, associated with a first user. The delete request message can include a request to delete contact information for the first user. The first device can send the delete request message to a second device. The delete request message can instruct the second device to delete the first user&#39;s contact information.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/051,336, filed Mar. 19, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,069,143, whichclaims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/896,728, filedMar. 23, 2007, the entireties of which are hereby incorporated byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present application relates generally to the exchange of contactinformation in a communication system and, more particularly, to systemsand methods for remote deletion of contact information.

BACKGROUND

Mobile communications devices, such as cellular telephones, includememory to store contact information. This contact information istypically arranged in an address book (also known as a contact list) andcan include name, address information, telephone numbers, and emailaddresses, for example. Many of these address book systems offerfeatures such as speed dial, voice dial, custom ringtones, and images toenhance the look of the address book and user experience of using theaddress book. Address book options allow for various communicationmethods including voice call, messaging, and email.

Typically, contact information is shared and manually entered by a useror acquired by an electronic business card, such as a vCard, forexample. A person that receives the contact information is free to saveor delete the contact information at will.

SUMMARY

The present application provides various systems and methods for remotedeletion of contact information. In a first system of the presentapplication, a first device, associated with a first user, is configuredto generate and send a delete request message to a second device,associated with a second user. The delete request message can include arequest to delete contact information for the first user from the seconddevice. The second device can be configured to receive the deleterequest message and delete the contact information associated with thefirst user.

In a first method of the present application, a delete request messageis generated at a first device, associated with a first user. The deleterequest message can include a request to delete contact information forthe first user. The first device can send the delete request message toa second device, associated with a second user. Upon receipt at thesecond device, the delete request message can instruct the second deviceto delete the contact information associated with the first user.

In another system of the present application, a first device, associatedwith a first user, includes a first local contact database and a firstmessaging application. The first messaging application can be configuredto receive, as input, a character string and a destination telephonenumber. The first messaging application can use the character string anddestination telephone number to generate a delete request message andsend the delete request message to the destination telephone number. Thedelete request message can be used to request contact information forthe first user to be deleted from a second device associated with thedestination telephone number. The second device, associated with asecond user, can include a second local contact database and a secondmessaging application. The second local contact database can include thecontact information associated with the first user. The messagingapplication can be configured to receive the delete request message sentfrom the first device and delete the contact information associated withthe first user.

In another method of the present application, an input is received on afirst device, associated with a first user. The input can include acharacter string and a destination number. The first device can generatea delete request message with the character string and the destinationnumber and send the delete request message to a second device identifiedby the destination number. The delete request message is received at thesecond device and the contact information associated with the first userthat is stored on the second device is deleted.

In yet another system of the present application, a network databaseincludes a first network contact database entry and a second networkcontact database entry that is capable of being synched with a firstlocal contact database and a second local contact database,respectively. The second network contact database entry can includecontact information associated with a first user. The system alsoincludes a first device, associated with the first user, that includesthe first local contact database and a messaging application. Themessaging application can be configured to receive, as input, adestination telephone number, a character string, and a network contactdatabase number. The messaging application can be further configured touse the destination telephone number, the character string, and thenetwork contact database number to generate a delete request message andsend the delete request message to the network contact database. Thedelete request message can be used to request that the contactinformation associated with the first user be deleted from the secondnetwork contact database entry identified by the destination telephonenumber. After the contact information associated with the first user isdeleted from the second network contact database entry, asynchronization process can be initialized between the network contactdatabase and a second device. The second device, associated with asecond user, can include the second local contact database. The secondlocal contact database can include the contact information associatedwith the first user prior to being deleted via the synchronizationprocess.

In yet another method of the present application, a delete requestmessage is received at a network contact database from a first deviceassociated with a first user. The delete request message can include anetwork contact database number identifying the network contact databaseand a destination number identifying a network contact database entrywithin the network contact database that corresponds to a second userthat is associated with a second device. The second device can include alocal contact database. The network contact database can delete thecontact information associated with the first user that is stored withinthe network contact database entry. The network contact database canperform a synchronization process between the local contact database andthe network contact database thereby deleting the contact informationfrom a local contact database stored on the second device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a system for remote deletion of contactinformation in accordance with an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates a method for remotely deleting contactinformation in accordance with one embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 3 schematically illustrates a method for remotely deleting contactinformation in accordance with another embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a method for remotely deleting contactinformation in accordance with yet another embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a method for remotely deleting contactinformation in accordance with another embodiment of the presentapplication.

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates an exemplary device configured with amessaging application in accordance with an embodiment of the presentapplication.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As required, detailed embodiments of the present application aredisclosed herein. It must be understood that the disclosed embodimentsare merely exemplary examples of the application that may be embodied invarious and alternative forms, and combinations thereof. As used herein,the word “exemplary” is used expansively to refer to embodiments thatserve as an illustration, specimen, model or pattern. The figures arenot necessarily to scale and some features may be exaggerated orminimized to show details of particular components. In other instances,well-known components, systems, materials or methods have not beendescribed in detail in order to avoid obscuring the present application.Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed hereinare not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for theclaims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the artto variously employ the present application.

Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals represent like elementsthroughout the several views, FIG. 1 illustrates a system 100 forproviding functions to remotely delete contact information. Theillustrated system 100 includes a first device, device A 102, that isillustrated as being in communication with a second device, device B104, and a global contact database (GCD) 106.

Device A 102 and device B 104 each include a local contact database(LCD), LCD A 108 and LCD B 110, respectively. The LCDs 108, 110 areconfigured to store contact information for at least one person,business, voicemail system, emergency call center (e.g., 911), and thelike. Contact information can include, but is not limited to, phonenumbers, ringtones, email addresses, websites, and other identifyinginformation for a contact, such as likes, dislikes, birthday, otherimportant dates, and the like.

The GCD 106 is configured to store LCD entries for a plurality ofsubscribers in a network, such as a wireless communications network. Forexample, the GCD 106 can be configured to store the information storedin LCD A 108 and the information stored in LCD B 110. Each databaseentry is associated with a subscriber. Accordingly, as illustrated, GCD106 can include a database entry for subscriber A 112 and a databaseentry for subscriber B 114. As illustrated, each database entry 112, 114can include the same contact information as is stored in the LCDs 108,110.

Generally, the system 100 provides a remote deletion function so that afirst user, operating device A 102, for example, can send a deleterequest message to device B 104. The delete request message includes arequest to delete the first user's contact information from LCD B 110.Several exemplary embodiments of delete request messages will bedescribed below.

Device B 104 is also in communication with a computer 116 for synchingcontact information between LCD B 110 and LCD B2 117. The computer 116can be, but is not limited to, a desktop computer, a tower computer, alaptop computer, a notebook computer, a tablet computer, a handheldcomputer, a server, a web server, or other device capable of performingthe synchronization process described below.

In some instances, a user may synchronize LCD B 110 and LCD B2 117 toretrieve any contact information that is remotely deleted at the requestof another user. To prevent this, the LCD B 110 or device B 104 caninclude an instruction, flag, or trigger, for example, to preventinformation from being transferred to the LCD B 110. In addition, whenconnected to the computer 116, device B 104 can forward the deleterequest message to the computer 116 and delete the contact information.Alternatively, if contact information remains on LCD B2 117 and a userenters a telephone number or email address that was previously deletedfrom LCD B 110 using a remote delete function, then device B 104 canprevent the user from placing the call, for example.

In one embodiment, the delete request message is a text messageincluding a destination number, such as, the telephone number of deviceB 104, and a character string. The destination number can identify thedevice from which contact information is to be deleted. The destinationnumber can be entered manually or selected from a contact list menu 118.

The contact list menu 118 is illustrated as including contact entriesfor contact B, contact C, contact D, contact E, and contact F. Contact Bis selected and upon selection an option menu 120 can be presented. Theoption menu 120 can include any number of options, including, but notlimited to, a call option, a send text option 122, a send email option,and a delete my info option 124. The send text option 122, whenselected, can present a new message screen 126. A user can enter thedestination number and a character string. The text message screen 126can be configured to automatically populate the recipient and thecorresponding destination number (in this example, contact B). The usercan manually enter a character string that can be identified as arequest to delete contact information.

The character string can include a keyword that is associated with adelete function. For example, a text message sent to device B 104 withthe keyword “delete” can be received by device B 104. Device B 104 canbe instructed by the keyword to delete contact information associatedwith the source number, i.e., subscriber A's contact informationassociated with the telephone number for device A 102.

In another embodiment, the character string includes a telephone numberand a keyword. For example, “delete 555-555-5555” can be received bydevice B 104 and device B 104 can be instructed by the character stringto delete contact information associated with the number “555-555-5555.”Accordingly, the telephone number can be a redundant entry of the sourcenumber (since the source number is provided in the “from” field of atext message), or another telephone number, such as a telephone numberfor another device owned by subscriber A.

Alternatively, the delete my info option 124 can be selected from theoption menu 120. The delete my info option 124 is configured toautomatically generate and populate a delete request message directed tothe selected contact. The delete message is configured to request thedestination device to delete contact information associated with theuser of the source device, for example, device A 102. Upon selecting thedelete my info option 124, a confirmation screen 128 can be presented.The confirmation screen 128 can include an option to confirm that theuser would like to send the delete request message or abort the deleterequest message.

The aforementioned embodiments can be used by a subscriber to requestthe deletion of his or her information without any prior authorization.In some instances, however, the delete message may have been sent byaccident. Accordingly, additional embodiments are provided wherein anauthorization is required before a remote deletion process can becompleted.

In one embodiment, device A 102 and device B 104 can initiate anauthorization session wherein a set of authorization rules areestablished among the devices 102, 104. The authorization session can beinitiated at the time contact information is exchanged or at any othertime, for example.

By way of example, an authorization rule can be a setting or otherindication on a first device, such as device B 104, that authorizes thecompletion of a delete request received from a second device, such asdevice A 102. Likewise, a setting or other indication on device A 102can be used to authorize the completion of a delete request receivedfrom device B 104.

By way of further example, an authorization rule can be a key, apassword, or other authorization mechanism. It is contemplated that theauthorization mechanism can be chosen by the device users or selected bya network entity and sent to each device. The authorization mechanismcan be automatically entered upon selection of the delete my info option124. The authorization key can be the character string or a portionthereof sent in the delete request message. In any case, the user can beprompted to enter or reenter the authorization key prior to sending thedelete request message.

Referring now to FIG. 2, a method 200 for remotely deleting contactinformation is schematically illustrated in accordance with oneembodiment of the present application. It should be understood that thesteps described are not necessarily presented in any particular orderand performance of some or all the steps in an alternative order ispossible and contemplated. The steps have been presented in thedemonstrated order for ease of description and illustration. Steps canbe added, omitted, and/or performed simultaneously without departingfrom the scope of the appended claims. Some or all steps of thisprocess, and/or substantially equivalent steps, can be performed byexecution of computer-readable instructions included on acomputer-readable medium. The method 200 is now described with referenceto FIG. 1.

The method 200 begins and flow proceeds to step 202 wherein a messagingapplication is opened on a device, such as, device A 102, for example.Flow then proceeds to step 204 wherein the messaging applicationreceives an input of the character string and a destination number. Thedestination number, for purposes of this example, is the telephonenumber for device B 104.

As described above, the character string and destination number can bepopulated automatically via the delete my info option 124 or enteredmanually in a text message. Regardless of the method by which thecharacter string and destination number are entered, a delete requestmessage is generated from the input, at step 206. At step 208, thedelete request message is sent to the device B 104. At step 210, thedelete request message is received at the device B 104. At step 212,device B 104 deletes the contact information associated with the sourcetelephone number. The method ends.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a method 300 for remotely deleting contactinformation is schematically illustrated in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present application. It should be understood that thesteps described are not necessarily presented in any particular orderand performance of some or all the steps in an alternative order ispossible and contemplated. The steps have been presented in thedemonstrated order for ease of description and illustration. Steps canbe added, omitted, and/or performed simultaneously without departingfrom the scope of the appended claims. Some or all steps of thisprocess, and/or substantially equivalent steps, can be performed byexecution of computer-readable instructions included on acomputer-readable medium. The method 300 is now described with referenceto FIG. 1.

The method 300 begins and flow proceeds to step 302 wherein a messagingapplication is opened on a device, such as, device A 102, for example.Flow then proceeds to step 304 wherein authorization rules areestablished among the devices 102, 104. As described above, anauthorization rule can be a setting or other indication on device B 104that authorizes the completion of a delete request received from deviceA 102. Likewise, a setting or other indication on device A 102 can beused to authorize the completion of a delete request received fromdevice B 104. As also described above, an authorization rule can be akey, a password, or other authorization mechanism. It is contemplatedthat the authorization mechanism can be chosen by the device users orselected by a network entity and sent to each device.

After any authorization rules are established, flow proceeds to step 306wherein the messaging application receives an input of the characterstring including any applicable authorization key, and a destinationnumber. The destination number, for purposes of this example, is thetelephone number for device B 104. As described above, the characterstring and destination number can be populated automatically via thedelete my info option 124 or entered manually in a text message.Regardless of the method by which the character string and destinationnumber are entered, a delete request message is generated from theinput, at step 308. At step 310, the delete request message is sent todevice B 104. At step 312, the delete request message is received atdevice B 104. At step 314, device B 104 performs an authorization, forexample, by comparing the authorization key received in the deleterequest message and to the authorization key stored in device B 104. Atstep 316, device B 104 deletes the contact information associated withthe source telephone number. The method ends.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a method 400 for remotely deleting contactinformation from a global contact database is illustrated in accordancewith an embodiment of the present application. It should be understoodthat the steps described are not necessarily presented in any particularorder and performance of some or all the steps in an alternative orderis possible and contemplated. The steps have been presented in thedemonstrated order for ease of description and illustration. Steps canbe added, omitted, and/or performed simultaneously without departingfrom the scope of the appended claims. Some or all steps of thisprocess, and/or substantially equivalent steps, can be performed byexecution of computer-readable instructions included on acomputer-readable medium. The method 400 is now described with referenceto FIG. 1.

The method 400 provides for remote deletion of contact information fromthe GCD 106. The GCD 106 can be synchronized with the device LCDs, LCD A108 and LCD B 110. A synchronization process can occur periodically orupon request from a device, such as device B 104, for example.

The delete request message is sent to a telephone number or short codeassociated with the GCD 106. The destination number can be included inthe character string along with a keyword for the request to deletecontact information from the database entry for the destination number.

The method 400 begins and flow proceeds to step 402 wherein a messagingapplication is opened on a device, such as, device A 102, for example.Flow then proceeds to step 404 wherein the messaging applicationreceives an input of the character string, a destination number, and theGCD 106 telephone number or short code. The destination number, forpurposes of this example, is the telephone number for device B 104. Asdescribed above, the character string and destination number can bepopulated automatically via the delete my info option 124 or enteredmanually in a text message. Regardless of the method by which thecharacter string and destination number are entered, a delete requestmessage is generated from the input, at step 406. At step 408, thedelete request message is sent to the GCD 106. At step 410, the deleterequest message is received at the GCD 106. At step 412, the GCD 106deletes the contact information associated with the source telephonenumber. The method 400 then proceeds to step 414 wherein the GCD 106performs a synchronization process with LCD B 110 such that the contactinformation stored in LCD B 110 no longer includes the contactinformation for subscriber A. The method ends.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a method for remotely deleting contactinformation from a global contact database is illustrated in accordancewith another embodiment of the present application. It should beunderstood that the steps described are not necessarily presented in anyparticular order and performance of some or all the steps in analternative order is possible and contemplated. The steps have beenpresented in the demonstrated order for ease of description andillustration. Steps can be added, omitted, and/or performedsimultaneously without departing from the scope of the appended claims.Some or all steps of this process, and/or substantially equivalentsteps, can be performed by execution of computer-readable instructionsincluded on a computer-readable medium. The method 500 is now describedwith reference to FIG. 1.

The method 500 begins and flow proceeds to step 502 wherein a messagingapplication is opened on a device, such as, device A 102, for example.Flow then proceeds to step 504 wherein authorization rules areestablished. An authorization rule can include a setting or otherindication within the GCD 106 to authorize a user to remotely deletingcontact information from any destination number or a select group ofdestination numbers. Alternatively, the authorization rule can includean authorization key, password, or other authorization mechanism.

After any authorization rules are established, flow proceeds to step 506wherein the messaging application receives an input of the characterstring, a destination number, and the GCD 106 telephone number or shortcode. The destination number, for purposes of this example, is thetelephone number for device B 104. As described above, the characterstring and destination number can be populated automatically via thedelete my info option 124 or entered manually in a text message.Regardless of the method by which the character string and destinationnumber are entered, a delete request message is generated from theinput, at step 508. At step 510, the delete request message is sent tothe GCD 106. At step 512, the delete request message is received at theGCD 106 and the GCD 106 performs an authorization for the delete requestmessage at step 514 in accordance with the authorization rules definedin step 504. At step 516, the GCD 106 deletes the contact informationassociated with the source telephone number. The method 400 thenproceeds to step 518 wherein the GCD 106 performs a synchronizationprocess with LCD B 110 such that the contact information stored in LCD B110 no longer includes the contact information for subscriber A. Themethod ends.

Referring now to FIG. 6, a block diagram illustrating various componentsof an exemplary device 600 is shown, according to the presentapplication. Although no connections are shown between the componentsillustrated and described in FIG. 6, the components can interact witheach other to carry out device functions.

As illustrated, the device 600 can be a single-mode or multi-mode mobilecommunications device. FIG. 6 and the following discussion are intendedto provide a brief, general description of a suitable environment inwhich the various aspects of an embodiment of the present applicationcan be implemented. While the description includes a general context ofcomputer-executable instructions, the present application can also beimplemented in combination with other program modules and/or as acombination of hardware and software. Particular processes carried outby the device 600 are described in greater detail with reference toFIGS. 2-5. These processes can be carried out via applications storedwithin a memory on the device 600.

Generally, applications can include routines, program modules, programs,components, data structures, and the like. Applications can beimplemented on various system configurations, including single-processoror multiprocessor systems, minicomputers, mainframe computers, personalcomputers, hand-held computing devices, microprocessor-based,programmable consumer electronics, combinations thereof, and the like.

The device 600 includes a display 602 for displaying multimedia such as,for example, text, images, video, telephony functions, caller line IDdata, setup functions, menus, messages, wallpaper, graphics, and thelike. The device 600 also includes a processor 604 for controllingand/or processing data. A memory 606 can interface with the processor604 for the storage of data and/or applications 608. The memory 606 caninclude a variety of computer readable media including, but not limitedto, volatile media, non-volatile media, removable media, andnon-removable media. Computer-readable media can include device storagemedia and communication media. Storage media can include volatile and/ornon-volatile, removable and/or non-removable media such as, for example,RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, DVD,or other optical disk storage, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage,other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used tostore the desired information and that can be accessed by the device600.

The memory 606 can be configured to store one or more applications 608,such as, for example, a messaging application that provides a remotedelete function. The applications 608 can also include a user interface(UI) application 610. The UI application 610 can interface with a client612 (e.g., an operating system) to facilitate user interaction withdevice functionality and data, for example, answering/initiating calls,entering/deleting data, configuring settings, address book manipulation,multi-mode interaction, responding to update offers, and the like. Theapplications 608 can include other applications 614 such as, forexample, a messaging application. The applications 608 can be stored inthe memory 606 and/or in a firmware 616, and can be executed by theprocessor 604. The firmware 616 can also store code for execution duringinitialization of the device 600.

A communications component 618 can interface with the processor 604 tofacilitate wired/wireless communications with external systemsincluding, for example, cellular networks, VoIP networks, LAN, WAN, MAN,PAN, that can be implemented using WiFi, WiMax, combinations and/orimprovements thereof, and the like. The communications component 618 canalso include a multi-mode communications subsystem for providingcellular communications via different cellular technologies. Forexample, a first cellular transceiver 620 can operate in one mode, forexample, GSM, and an Nth transceiver 622 can operate in a differentmode, for example WiFi. While only two transceivers 620, 622 areillustrated, it should be appreciated that a plurality of transceiverscan be included. The communications component 618 can also include atransceiver 624 for unlicensed RF communications using technology suchas, for example, WiFi, WiMAX, near-field communications, other RF andthe like. The transceiver 624 can also be configured for line-of-sighttechnologies, such as, infrared and IRDA, far example. Although a singletransceiver 624 is illustrated, multiple transceivers for unlicensed RFand line-of-sight technologies are contemplated.

The communications component 618 can also facilitate communicationsreception from terrestrial radio networks, digital satellite radionetworks, Internet-based radio services networks, combinations thereof,and the like. The communications component 618 can process data from anetwork, such as, for example, the Internet, a corporate WAN, anintranet, a home broadband network, and the like, via an ISP, DSLprovider, or other broadband service provider.

An input/output (I/O) interface 626 can be provided for input/output ofdata and/or signals. The I/O interface 626 can be a hardwire connection,such as, for example, a USB, PS2, IEEE 1394, serial, parallel, IEEE802.3 (e.g., Ethernet—RJ45, RJ48), traditional telephone jack (e.g.,RJ11, RJ14, RJ25) and the like, and can accept other I/O devices, suchas, for example, a keyboard, keypad, mouse, interface tether, styluspen, printer, plotter, jump/thumb drive, touch screen, multi-touchscreen, touch pad, trackball, joy stick, controller, monitor, display,LCD, plasma, OLED, combinations thereof, and the like.

Audio capabilities can be provided by an audio I/O component 628 thatcan include a speaker (not shown) for the output of audio signals and amicrophone (not shown) to collect audio signals.

The device 600 can include a slot interface 630 for accommodating asubscriber identity system 632, such as, for example, a SIM or universalSIM (USIM). The subscriber identity system 632 instead can bemanufactured into the device 600, thereby obviating the need for a slotinterface 630.

The device 600 can include an image capture and processing system 634.Photos and/or videos can be obtained via an associated image capturesubsystem of the image system 634, for example, a camera. The device 600can also include a video systems component 636 for processing,recording, and/or transmitting video content.

A location component 638 can be included to send and/or receive signals,such as, for example, GPS data, assisted GPS data, triangulation data,combinations thereof, and the like. The device 600 can use the receiveddata to identify its location or can transmit data used by other devicesto determine the device 600 location.

The device 600 can include a power source 640 such as batteries and/orother power subsystem (AC or DC). The power source 640 can besingle-use, continuous, or rechargeable. In the case of the latter, thepower source 640 can interface with an external power system or chargingequipment via a power I/O component 642.

The law does not require and it is economically prohibitive toillustrate and teach every possible embodiment of the present claims.Hence, the above-described embodiments are merely exemplaryillustrations of implementations set forth for a clear understanding ofthe principles of the application. Variations, modifications, andcombinations may be made to the above-described embodiments withoutdeparting from the scope of the claims. All such variations,modifications, and combinations are included herein by the scope of thisdisclosure and the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: receiving a delete requestmessage, at a network contact database, from a first device associatedwith a first user, the delete request message comprising a text messagegenerated by the first device, the text message comprising a destinationnumber that identifies a second device from which contact informationassociated with the first user is to be deleted and a character stringthat instructs the network contact database to delete the contactinformation associated with the first user from the second device, andthe second device being associated with a second user and comprising alocal contact database of the second device; causing, by a processor,contact information associated with the first user from the networkcontact database to be deleted in response to the delete requestmessage; and causing, by the processor, a synchronization process to beinitiated between the local contact database of the second device andthe network contact database to delete, from the local contact databaseof the second device, the contact information associated with the firstuser.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the delete request messagefurther comprises a network contact database number identifying thenetwork contact database, and wherein the destination number alsoidentifies an entry within the network contact database corresponding tothe second device.
 3. The method of claim 1, further comprisingexecuting an action to ensure that the contact information deleted inconnection with the synchronization process is not subsequently added tothe local contact database of the second device.
 4. The method of claim3, wherein executing the action comprises causing a flag to be set atthe second device, the flag acting to prevent the contact informationfrom being transferred from the network contact database to the localcontact database of the second device following deletion of the contactinformation at the second device during the synchronization process. 5.The method of claim 3, wherein executing the action comprises, as partof initiating the synchronization process, forwarding the delete requestmessage to the second device.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein thesecond device is a handheld computer associated with the second user. 7.The method of claim 1, wherein the second device is a computer selectedfrom a group of computers consisting of: a desktop computer associatedwith the second user; a laptop computer associated with the second user;and a tablet computer associated with the second user.
 8. Anon-transitory computer-readable storage medium comprising instructionsthat, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to performoperations comprising: receiving a delete request message, at a networkcontact database, from a first device associated with a first user, thedelete request message comprising a text message generated by the firstdevice, the text message comprising a destination number that identifiesa second device from which contact information associated with the firstuser is to be deleted and a character string that instructs the networkcontact database to delete the contact information associated with thefirst user from the second device, and the second device beingassociated with a second user and having a local contact database of thesecond device; deleting the contact information corresponding to thefirst user from the network contact database in response to the deleterequest message; and initiating a synchronization process between thelocal contact database of the second device and the network contactdatabase to delete, from the local contact database of the seconddevice, the contact information associated with the first user.
 9. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein thedelete request message further comprises a network contact databasenumber identifying the network contact database, and the destinationnumber also identifies an entry within the network contact databasecorresponding to the second device.
 10. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein the operationsfurther comprise executing an action to ensure that the contactinformation deleted is not subsequently added to the local contactdatabase of the second device.
 11. The non-transitory computer-readablestorage medium of claim 10, wherein executing the action comprisescausing a flag to be set at the second device, the flag acting toprevent the contact information from being transferred from the networkcontact database to the local contact database of the second devicefollowing deletion of the contact information at the second deviceduring the synchronization process.
 12. The non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium of claim 10, wherein executing theaction comprises, as part of initiating the synchronization process,forwarding the delete request message to the second device.
 13. Thenon-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8, wherein thesecond device is a handheld computer associated with the second user.14. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 8,wherein the second device is a computer selected from a group ofcomputers consisting of: a desktop computer associated with the seconduser; a laptop computer associated with the second user; and a tabletcomputer associated with the second user.
 15. A method comprising:generating a delete request message at a first device associated with afirst user, the delete request message requesting deletion of contactinformation associated with the first user; sending, from the firstdevice, the delete request message for delivery to a second deviceassociated with a second user; after sending the delete request message,determining whether, at the first device, to allow the first user toprovide an authorization to have the contact information associated withthe first user deleted from the second device, wherein the contactinformation will not be deleted at the second device without theauthorization having been provided at the first device; receiving, atthe first device, a request for the authorization to have the seconddevice delete the contact information; and receiving, at the firstdevice, from the first user, and in response to receiving the request,the authorization from the first user to have the second device deletethe contact information associated with the first user.
 16. The methodof claim 15, further comprising sending, in response to receiving theauthorization, an authorization message for delivery to the seconddevice for authorizing deletion of the contact information at the seconddevice.
 17. The method of claim 15, further comprising presenting to thefirst user, a prompt for authorizing the delete request message; andwherein the authorization is received from the first user in response tothe prompt.
 18. The method of claim 15, wherein the second device is ahandheld computer associated with the second user.